Abstract
Purpose: The biological mechanisms underlying developmental stuttering remain unclear. In a previous investigation, we showed that there is significant spatial correspondence between regional gray matter structural anomalies and the expression of genes linked to energy metabolism. In the current study, we sought to further examine the relationship between structural anomalies in the brain in children with persistent stuttering and brain regional energy metabolism. Method: High-resolution structural MRI scans were acquired from 26 persistent stuttering and 44 typically developing children. Voxel-based morphometry was used to quantify the between-group gray matter volume (GMV) differences across the whole brain. Group differences in GMV were then compared with published values for the pattern of glucose metabolism measured via F18 fluorodeoxyglucose uptake in the brains of 29 healthy volunteers using positron emission tomography. Results: A significant positive correlation between GMV differences and F18 fluorodeoxyglucose uptake was found in the left hemisphere (ρ =.36, p <.01), where speech-motor and language processing are typically localized. No such correlation was observed in the right hemisphere (ρ =.05, p =.70). Conclusions: Corroborating our previous gene expression studies, the results of the current study suggest a potential connection between energy metabolism and stuttering. Brain regions with high energy utilization may be particularly vulnerable to anatomical changes associated with stuttering. Such changes may be further exacerbated when there are sharp increases in brain energy utilization, which coincides with the developmental period of rapid speech/language acquisition and the onset of stuttering during childhood.
Original language | English |
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Pages (from-to) | 2317-2324 |
Number of pages | 8 |
Journal | Journal of Speech, Language, and Hearing Research |
Volume | 64 |
Issue number | 6s |
DOIs | |
State | Published - Jun 2021 |
Bibliographical note
Funding Information:This work was supported by Award Numbers R21DC015853 (H. M. C.), R01DC011277 (S. C.) from the National Institute on Deafness and Other Communication Disorders (NIDCD), and the Matthew K. Smith Stuttering Research Fund. The content is solely the responsibility of the authors and does not necessarily represent the official views of the NIDCD or the National Institutes of Health. The authors wish to thank all the children and parents who participated in this study. We also thank Saralyn Rubsam, Megan Sheppard, Nasreen Al-Qadi, Chelsea Johnson, and Kristin Hicks for their assistance in participant recruitment, behavioral testing, and help with MRI data collection, Scarlett Doyle for her assistance in MRI data acquisition, and Ashley Diener for her assistance in speech data analyses.
Publisher Copyright:
© 2021 American Speech-Language-Hearing Association.